Last year Dale Earnhardt, Jr. left his father's team when he and his sister Kelly did not get majority interest in the team the late Dale Earnhardt had built to leave to his children. This came after heated discussions and feuding with his stepmother, Teresa Earnhardt, who refused to give her stepchildren majority ownership.
Now it appears no Earnhardt will have the company.
Sirius NASCAR Radio's Sirius Speedway is reporting that Teresa Earnhardt, Dale Jr.'s stepmother and owner of DEI, has called upon the services of Bear, Stearns and Company to sell the company.
Who's interested? According to reports, Max Siegel, President of Global Operations at DEI, is very anxious to buy the entire company, not just majority interest. It also states that Earnhardt is tired of the spotlight and simply wants to get out.
Teresa Earnhardt will still hold onto licensing rights to "Dale Earnhardt" and "Intimidator" merchandise.
My question, and I'm sure a lot of people are asking the same thing, is why the heck did Teresa go through all that with Junior just to leave the next year?
Well, a lot of things could have contributed. First of all, the team is struggling for sponsors. Budweiser left the team in 2007 and now it's being said that Menards, who sponsors Paul Menard's No. 15, is also leaving.
Max Siegel has also said the team may be forced to shut down the No. 1 of Reagan Smith if sponsorship isn't found.
Additionally, DEI may be losing two drivers next year. Mark Martin has already announced he's leaving his part time gig in the No. 8 Chevy to drive full-time in 2009 with Hendrick Motorsports. Martin Truex, Jr. has been a constant in Silly Season rumors, as he's said to be extremely upset with the performance of his team.
Teresa Earnhardt has also been the recipient of some very harsh criticism. Kevin Harvick called her a "deadbeat" owner in January 2007, saying she was never at the track and just wanted to make money off her stepson and late husband. The media also began a frenzy about her when she said Dale Earnhardt, Jr. wasn't a caliber championship driver.
A merger with Ginn last year looked to be a good starting point for the already struggling team. Paul Menard was up in points, ARMY replaced Budweiser when they left at the end of the season, and things definitely looked good for the team going into 2008.
But looks can be very deceiving.
This season Dale Earnhardt, Inc. drivers have racked up two top fives, five top 10s, and three DNFs.
Something inside me keeps saying Dale Earnhardt's dream is becoming nothing more than NASCAR's memory.
13 comments Last one added 11 months ago — Leave a Comment
Adam Amick 12 months ago
The wicked Witch of the East begone!
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Brandon Soublet 12 months ago
She's an idiot. She shoulda sold the team to Junior when she had the chance. This is ridiculous. Dale set this team up so he could hand the reins over to Junior, and now that voodoo woman (as my mom calls her) is selling the team out of the family. She didn't seem too tired of the spotlight when all the craziness was going down last year...
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Brian Kennedy 12 months ago
This report has been officially DENIED by DEI.....
From Jayski.com:
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. is not for sale -- right now. DEI president Max Siegel on Tuesday refuted an Internet report that company owner Teresa Earnhardt had commissioned investment banking firm Bear, Stearns & Co., Inc. to locate a buyer or financial investment partner. "We have not engaged Bear, Stearns or Goldman Sachs or anyone else," Siegel said. "We are contacted all the time by outside firms about getting involved in the sport. We are not for sale right now. Nothing is imminent. Are we constantly weighing that as an option? Does that make sense? Quite frankly, we don't know," Siegel said.
"Every team is looking for a way to bring in appropriate resources. Every single one. We haven't engaged anybody. People obviously approach us -- they're approaching everybody. We're looking to be around for a long time in future. We're feeling pretty damn good about where we're going, competition-wise."
Siegel was forced to approach his driving corps with assurance that the team is currently not for sale. "I have assured them it's not true," Siegel said.
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Jen Preston 12 months ago
I don't know. Something tells me Teresa's going to get out before the team gets into worse shape. Dale Jr. needs to get that team back. Or Tony Stewart...
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Christopher Leone 12 months ago
Dale Earnhardt founded that team for his kids to have something to rely on when he was gone. Well, he's gone, and his widow snapped it up.
If you think about the original reason DEI was founded, that team has no reason to exist anymore, with all the kids gone.
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Brandon Soublet 12 months ago
W3rd, Chris.
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L.J. Burgess 12 months ago
All you TE flamers ... If I were TE I would have done the same thing. What? Do you really believe TE would have gotten no part of the team? DEI was founded to take care of the WHOLE family.
If Ironhead had fixed up a will naming the kids as the beneficiaries he would have given a BIG piece to TE and their daughter regardless. They loved each other. You can knock her all you want but she didn't fold or break under the pressure of losing her man and the CEO of DEI now did she.
I guess he never planned on dying eh? Dumbass.
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Jen Preston 12 months ago
I honestly do think Teresa would've got part of that team- she was the business mind behind it, just like so many other wives are now (Delana Harvick, Buffy Waltrip...). But I think that would've been it- Dale Jr., Kerry and Kelly were meant to have that team when their daddy died, I believe that with all my heart. Dale did love her, but he would've never wanted his kids to publicily fight with her for a company destined for them.
And calling him a dumbass... not cool man, not cool.
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Josh Prope 12 months ago
she is obviously in nascar still to make millions. and heck y not
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Jen Preston 11 months ago
This sport shouldn't be about making money... Brian France, are you listening?... It should be about real racers racing. Shame on you, Teresa.
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KIRK WHITE 12 months ago
TERESA Earnhardt is a sorry piece of work. Dale Earnhrdt Sr. started that company specifically for his kids, and they will never have it.I'M SORRY,BUT I'M INCLINED TO AGREE WITH WHAT KEVIN HARVICK SAID,but I will add this WHAT A MONEY GRUBBING,GOLD DIGGING SORRY EXCUSE FOR A BITCH.
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Kathy Radford 12 months ago
Teresa doen't know but DALE EARNHARDT is going to come back and haunt teresa for what she has done to all of this DEI she should of let Jr, and Kelly have the 51 percent and her the 49 and things would of been moving on up like the jeffersons but she didn't.
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Frank Doby 12 months ago
Way to go Teresa.. I knew you had it in you. It's a pity you couldn't see what everyone else did. There must really be something about the Golden Goose thing.
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